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Speaker: Frédéric Abécassis (historian, Larhra, ENS de Lyon)
The documentary, entitled Homeland was released in 2015; it plunges us into the daily life of an Iraqi family in the months before and after the American invasion. In two parts, each part lasting nearly three hours, this documentary about the war shares its title with the American series of the same name.
The film manages to show us how Iraqis see their history: the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein and the Ba’ath party, the heritage of their country, and the way in which the destruction of the State plunges society into chaos.
Marked by history and a willingness to testify, this film, over ten years after the events, is also a deep reflection on the traces of the past, about history and the way it leaves its imprint on societies and on individuals.
The end of the 2003 war, announced as a forthcoming disaster for the future in the first part, is also in the second part of the film, highlighting the period that preceded it.
Released in France in the context of the attacks in 2015 and 2016, it reminds us that the shockwave of historical ruptures is noticeable long after the events that caused them and that they go beyond the territories where we thought we could contain them.